Outland on Liberty (to my knowledge) had never hosted a concert before. Wouldn't it make sense for the promoter to visit the venue and make sure that they have a functional PA for this type of event before a show like this was booked there? I'm sure Outland jumped at the chance to get this show there, and why wouldn't they? Maybe the venue thought they had the necessary equipment, but it still seems like the promoter should have double checked, especially since I don't think BenCo has ever booked a show there before. Just seems like plain old lazy planning/execution.

Yeah, I'm a little pissed about not getting to see a show that I was kind of looking forward to. But there were two guys in back of me in line who drove from Cleveland who really have a right to be angry. Not to mention the bands that trekked out to Columbus expecting to play a show and were met with un-workable conditions.

I know canceled shows are a fact of life, but this seems like a situation that could have easily been avoided with a little proactiveness on the part of the venue/promoter. Not trying to lay blame, but I think it's pretty clear that the two aforementioned parties were at fault. Wouldn't recommend for anyone to attend a show at the Outland anytime soon, the piss-poor handling of this situation does not bode well for them.

I was kind of curious to know at what point that it was realized that the p.a. wasn't going to work and why it would have been ruled out to rent one for the evening. Sounds like it must have not been determined until later in the day. That's a real bummer.

_________________People to whom nothing has ever happened cannot understand the unimportance of events.

Well, im just speculating here since i have not spoken to Ben but I was pretty sure that they had the sound lined up. I spoke to the guy that was going to do sound and he was planning on bringing his own PA, which is a pretty nice system.

So I guess im saying that i have no idea why the gig was canceled but i doubt it was due to no sound equipment.

Good people of Columbus: Very bad news. The show tonight has been canceled. The promoter failed to provide us with a working PA. The crew & I worked for hours to try and make it work, but in the end, the sound equipment provided was not functional. I am so sorry. Tickets will be refunded. Please know we were there working hard to try and make it happen, but in the end we all suffered due to negligence on the part of The promoter. Next time you will get the show you deserve, good people. With a working PA. Many apologies and many thanks. -Annie & bandcrew

sometimes a working p.a. isn't enough. i know annie from previous shows together, and even with a stripped down band, she requires a lot from the p.a. i'm not placing blame, but it sounds like a miscommunication or misunderstanding about what was required for her show. in the end, hopefully it's a learning experience for both artist and promoter, and future issues will be prevented.

_________________i had written something big here and then i realized i didn't care at all - superunison

when you're a professional touring musician, and you play anything other than 3-piece garage rock, you're probably going to need a decent p.a. 3 separate monitor mixes? lead vocals, acoustic di, keyboards, some backing vocals... that shit all adds up, and it's perfectly reasonable to need those things.

i don't think it's fair to make st. vincent out to be some sort of art school diva. it's unfair to say someone is being difficult for expecting the sound system that was agreed upon in the booking contract.

again, i'm not calling out ben or anything; i really like his shows, and i've participated in quite a few of them. i just think this is an interesting discussion.

_________________i had written something big here and then i realized i didn't care at all - superunison

That's not a lot of gear. There are sound systems all over the place. I think that's why people are wondering what happened. You could also say that, if you're in a touring band, you're pretty used to unexpected sh#$ happening all of the time. Some people just roll along with it and some people don't.

_________________People to whom nothing has ever happened cannot understand the unimportance of events.

i don't think it's fair to make st. vincent out to be some sort of art school diva. it's unfair to say someone is being difficult for expecting the sound system that was agreed upon in the booking contract.

Thanks Erik for being the voice of reason.

_________________if I had the time or desire I would post a pic of Blair from Facts of Life and 1990 era Chip to produce the same effect

That's not a lot of gear. There are sound systems all over the place. I think that's why people are wondering what happened. You could also say that, if you're in a touring band, you're pretty used to unexpected sh#$ happening all of the time. Some people just roll along with it and some people don't.

you're right that some people roll along with it and others don't. my point is that artists shouldn't be called babydicks or divas for not wanting to roll with something that's not right, shouldn't have happened, and could have been prevented.

you're also right that touring bands get used to unexpected shit happening. however, you also see how many venues can get shit right. it's the bad clubs that stick out in your memory. trust me.

bo, i understand your point, but i think there's a real difference between a traditional rock band having bad sound and an act like st. vincent having bad sound. that being said, my only issue with what happened is that st. vincent should have called the venue/promoter in advance and made clear how important having a proper sound system was. at the very least, then the show could have been canceled earlier.

_________________i had written something big here and then i realized i didn't care at all - superunison